I have started a new series.

I look forward to working with you.

A scream-like voice rose from the First Mage Corps of the Kingdom of Kajin.

"Haahhh?

No, no, no, no, no.

I just got back from an expedition."

Liana, who had come to the castle to report without even unpacking her travel gear, reflexively protested at the outrageous remark made by her thin-mustached superior from her own mage corps.

"Yes, yes, welcome back.

Really, the timing couldn’t have been better.

Actually, Miss Carla sprained her finger, you see."

Behind the thin-mustached superior, Carla—her hair curled elaborately and her makeup flawless—held out a finger wrapped in bandages as if to show it off.

Her beautiful yet completely impractical luxurious dress clearly showed that Carla had not the slightest intention of ever going outside to work as a mage.

The sprained finger was obviously a made-up excuse.

"So I’d like you to go and restore the barrier at the East Tower."

When Liana desperately looked around for help, the surrounding mages all averted their eyes and pretended to be absorbed in their work, as if to say they wanted no part of this.

They knew that if they spoke up carelessly, the thin-mustached superior would happily dump the job on them instead.

"Excuse me!

I suffered severe burns on the entire left side of my body fighting a salamander in the frontier!

I nearly died from mana exhaustion after using too much magic on healing!

And yet you’re telling me to set up a barrier again?

That’s unreasonable!

Besides, monster subjugation and barrier maintenance aren’t even my job, are they?

This was originally Miss Carla’s responsibility, wasn’t it?"

The injuries Liana sustained during the salamander subjugation had been critical.

The left half of her body had been thoroughly burned, and restoring her light brown hair, pale skin, and slightly sharp purple eyes had been no easy task.

Seeing her familiar, slightly stern face reflected back at her in the mirror after healing had filled her with indescribable relief.

"But you can do it too, can’t you?

You graduated top of your class from that National Academy."

At the snide remark from her thin-mustached superior, a vein throbbed on Liana’s forehead.

It was true that Liana had graduated from the Kingdom of Kajin’s National Academy and had been appointed to royal service in recognition of her achievements.

However.

"Even if I graduated from the National Academy, my job is as a civil clerk.

Paperwork is my main duty!"

Liana’s position was, at most, that of a clerk employed by the First Mage Corps.

Moreover, she was a commoner.

Without the backing of any high-ranking noble, Liana’s standing was flimsier than a sheet of cheap paper.

And of course, her pay was so low it was depressing to even compare it to that of actual mages.

So why did she have to be burdened with dangerous subjugations and exhausting work?

However, in response to Liana’s protest, the thin-mustached superior let out an exaggerated sigh and glared at her.

"Honestly.

Are you incapable of showing consideration for a colleague?

Miss Carla is suffering terribly from a severe sprain, you know?

Unlike you, a delicate young lady from a distinguished noble family is extremely fragile and easily hurt."

Meanwhile, Carla herself was checking the polish on her nails behind the thin mustache, ordering her maid to attend to her grooming.

Carla Autour.

She was the daughter of the Duke of Autour and the fiancée of Crown Prince Gent Kajin.

Not only was she of noble birth, but she also possessed outstanding magical ability, and despite having joined the First Mage Corps only recently, she had already amassed numerous achievements.

On top of that, she was a stunning beauty with glossy black hair and jewel-like green eyes, and it was widely said that the crown prince adored her and never let her out of his sight.

Although the thin-mustached superior technically outranked Carla, he was far inferior to her in status.

He spared no effort in flattering Carla, who was destined to become crown princess, and passed the resulting burden onto his subordinates.

"And what about me, who nearly died subjugating a salamander in Lady Carla’s place?

Don’t I deserve any consideration as a colleague?"

Liana protested angrily, but the thin-mustached superior merely raised one eyebrow.

"But you’re already healed, aren’t you?"

As if speaking patiently to a stubborn child, the thin-mustached superior spoke slowly to Liana.

"This is an order, Liana."

At those familiar words, Liana fell silent.

Once it was called an order from a superior, there was no way for a subordinate like Liana to resist.

Resisting would only result in a pay cut.

In the end, Liana was sent straight to the East Tower.

By the time she finally arrived at the East Tower with her mana not yet fully recovered, the soldiers berated her endlessly for being late and warned her about what would happen if the barrier failed and magical beasts invaded.

She somehow managed to restore the barrier while suffering yet another bout of mana exhaustion.

Her head throbbed violently, her body grew cold and trembled, and her vision blurred.

"Tch!

A mere commoner clerk, holding back on your power.

Do you intend to waste this magnificent barrier maintenance magic circle developed by His Highness the Crown Prince?

You fool!"

The soldiers threw Liana, who could barely walk due to mana exhaustion, out of the tower.

Outside the tower, magical beasts were fewer thanks to the barrier, but they were not entirely absent.

Despite that danger, they expelled the unsteady Liana simply because she had been late restoring the barrier.

Liana was always treated poorly for being a commoner, but today the soldiers’ mood must have been especially foul, as the treatment was downright atrocious.

Fearing she might be assaulted if she stayed any longer, she desperately moved her legs and fled from the fortress.

"This is bad.

I might die…"

With her consciousness fading, Liana finally collapsed at the base of a large tree once the fortress was no longer visible even from afar.

The surroundings began to darken, and the chill of night crept into the air.

"I can’t anymore…"

At that point, Liana’s consciousness abruptly cut off.

The crackling sound of a fire woke Liana.

An old but clean blanket had been draped over her body, and it was wonderfully warm.

"Oh, you’re awake?"

When Liana startled upright, a kind-looking middle-aged man stepped closer.

He was a large, bear-like man with brown hair and brown eyes, but his gaze was extraordinarily gentle.

Wrapped in the man’s soft, comforting presence, Liana’s wariness dissipated instantly.

"Are you okay?

You were collapsed at the base of that tree over there."

"Ah, thank you very much for helping me…"

Holding her throbbing head, Liana weakly expressed her gratitude.

"You look unwell.

Are you sure you’re okay?

I was planning to camp out here for the night, but maybe it’d be better to return to town.

Should we get a doctor to look at you?"

The kind-looking man asked with concern.

Thinking that a complete stranger was kinder than her own superior and colleagues nearly brought Liana to tears.

"I’m fine.

It’s just mana exhaustion.

I’ll recover if I rest…"

"What?

Mana exhaustion?

You’re a mage?

Then this should help."

The man took a long, slender flask from his bag and held it to Liana’s lips.

When she swallowed a mouthful, she found it to be a strangely flavored drink.

It had almost no taste, yet a faint aroma lingered.

Peering into the flask, she saw a single long mushroom submerged inside.

With each swallow, a gentle warmth spread through her body, and her mana steadily returned.

"Oh, you’ve got an impressive amount of mana.

Normally one sip would be enough to recover."

The man looked at Liana in surprise.

Liana drank greedily until the flask was empty.

"Ah, my mana’s fully restored!

What is this water?

Wait, don’t tell me it’s something expensive?"

Though astonished at how light her body felt, Liana turned pale when she realized she had drunk it all.

"No, no, it’s fine.

It’s not very well known in this country, but in the neighboring Dawn Empire, this is common.

It’s a magic mushroom soaked in medicinal water.

They use it all the time for mana recovery there, and it’s not that expensive.

Don’t worry about it."

Sensing something from Liana’s reaction, the man waved his hands dismissively.

Hearing that, Liana let out a sigh of relief.

"Th-thank goodness.

But I’m sorry for drinking it all.

I’ll pay you back."

"It’s fine.

More importantly, I’m glad you’re feeling better.

I’m Dalkas.

I’m an adventurer from the neighboring Dawn Empire."

"I’m Liana.

I’m a clerk from the Kingdom of Kajin."

At Liana’s introduction, Dalkas looked puzzled.

"A clerk?

With that outfit and that much mana?

You’re a clerk, not a mage?"

Liana was wearing a robe typically worn by mages, along with a simple shirt and pants.

She certainly looked more like a mage than a clerk.

"In the Kingdom of Kajin, commoners can’t become mages.

Only nobles can…"

"Huh?

Is that so?"

"Yes.

Mages study at the National Academy to obtain their qualifications, but only nobles are allowed to attend the academy in the first place.

A very small number of talented commoners are admitted as exceptions, but they can only choose the clerk course."

"Ah, so Liana-chan is one of those rare commoners.

That’s impressive.

You’re about the same age as my daughter, and you already work at the royal palace."

Dalkas smiled warmly and said her future looked bright, but then his expression turned puzzled again.

"But I don’t really understand what clerks do, but aren’t they supposed to handle paperwork inside the palace?

What were you doing out here in the mountains with magical beasts?"

"Ah, I was restoring the barrier at the East Tower."

"The barrier?

You mean that magic circle created by the Kingdom of Kajin’s crown prince?

Why were you doing that?

You’re a clerk, right?"

"Yes.

I’m a clerk…"

Originally, the barrier magic circle had been developed and researched by Liana during her five years at the National Academy.

While consulting with the crown prince about how to present it, it somehow became a joint development with the crown prince, his fiancée, and their attendants.

In the report, the crown prince’s name was written prominently as the lead developer.

Below that, the names of his fiancée and attendants were listed in grand fashion.

Liana’s name was written last, in small letters.

Incidentally, the only thing the crown prince and the others had done was tidy up the report’s formatting.

All development, research, and writing had been done solely by Liana.

"In the end, the only people in the Kingdom of Kajin who actually understand the magic circle are me and perhaps the academy professor who advised me on writing the paper.

It consumes an enormous amount of mana, so only a handful of people in this country can maintain it…"

Even Liana’s senior and the crown prince’s fiancée, Carla, likely could not maintain the circle.

Her mana was clearly insufficient.

Officially, requests to restore the barrier were directed to Carla, but in the end Liana was always the one sent out, and the credit always went to Carla.

All of Carla’s achievements since joining the mage corps had, in truth, been accomplished by Liana.

Before the kind-hearted Dalkas, Liana found herself venting grievances she had never told anyone before.

As an orphaned commoner, she had no allies in the royal palace.

After being treated so kindly, she couldn’t help but let her frustrations spill out.

"That’s awful.

Why do you keep doing that kind of work, Liana-chan?

Is it to repay the academy tuition or something?"

Dalkas asked angrily, his face twisted with indignation.

"No.

Normally, commoners who attend the academy are obligated to serve the country in some way after graduation, but in my case, that obligation was waived due to my contribution to the magic circle’s development."

"Calling it a contribution is putting it lightly.

You were the main developer.

Well, at least it’s good that you’re not bound to the country.

Then why keep doing that job…?

Ah, wait, don’t tell me.

Is it because you’re in love with the crown prince, or have a crush on him?

He’s a good-looking guy, judging by his portraits.

An unrecognized, forbidden love due to differences in status?"

Dalkas asked gently.

Knowing the crown prince had a fiancée, he looked extremely awkward, and perhaps because he had a daughter the same age, deeply worried.

"What?

No, no, absolutely not!

That man?

Every time we meet, he looks at my chest instead of my face!"

A shiver ran down her arms, and Liana shouted without thinking.

She was sick of the crown prince’s overly familiar and pushy behavior, yet Carla accused her of targeting him and subjected her to various forms of harassment.

It was utterly unreasonable.

Dalkas’s gaze flicked to Liana’s chest for just a moment.

He nodded as if understanding, then hurriedly looked away and waved his hands in panic at Liana’s suspicious stare.

"No, I swear I don’t have any ulterior motives.

I just checked for confirmation!

I swear to God, I’m only interested in my wife!

No matter how big they are, they can’t compare to my wife’s!"

"Even if you declare that, I don’t know how I’m supposed to respond."

Faced with Dalkas’s excessive earnestness, Liana couldn’t help but laugh.

Seeing that, Dalkas scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"Man, Liana-chan, you’re really cute when you smile.

You’re much more charming like that than when you look pale and miserable all the time.

Ah, knowing a kid the same age as my daughter is going through all this hardship is just heartbreaking.

You really should quit that job."

"But if I quit being a clerk, I won’t be able to work anywhere.

No one would hire an orphaned commoner without any backing."

"Why not?

Someone with your ability could work anywhere."

Liana drooped her head sadly.

"That’s not true.

If I quit being a clerk, I’ll definitely end up homeless."

Comments (0)

Trending Novels

I Became the strongest hero of the previous generation

Archmage on the bed

I was mistaken for an undefeated general

Healers in the martial arts world are obsessed

Became a genius Muggle in the Archmage Gallery

I Wove Earth’s History Into A Fantasy